<!--HTMLCleanerRegion--> Appendix 4


Appendix 4

Selected recommendations from previous parliamentary reports

The following recommendations made by previous Parliamentary committees have direct relevance for the committee's inquiry into the Torres Strait region

House of Representatives Standing Committee on Climate Change, Water, Environment and the Arts

Selected recommendations contained in the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Climate Change, Water, Environment and the Arts, Managing our coastal zone in a changing climate The time to act is now, October 2009

Recommendation 13

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government take urgent action to protect Australians from the threats of dengue fever and chikungunya virus. The knowledge gaps identified by the National Climate Change Adaptation Research Facility research plan with regards to the relationship between climate variation and vector-borne disease should be urgently addressed. The Australian Government should:

  • undertake research into the relationship between climate change and vector-borne disease
  • produce modelling to allow for advanced early warning of impending threats from vector-borne disease
  • continue to work towards producing a structured national framework for dealing with mosquito outbreaks in Australia
  • increase biosecurity measures to better protect against chikungunya virus entering Australia

Recommendation 17

The Committee recommends that the Department of Climate Change, in collaboration with the Queensland Government, CSIRO and Indigenous communities in the Torres Strait, undertake a major study into the vulnerability of the Torres Strait to the impacts of climate change and provide assistance in the development of an adaptation plan.

Recommendation 18

The Committee recommends that the Australian Government give the five recommendations calling for information, studies and data, as proposed by the Torres Strait Regional Authority, early and urgent consideration with a view to their implementation.

House of Representatives Standing Committee on Health and Ageing304

Selected recommendations contained in the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Health and Ageing, Regional health issues jointly affecting Australia and the South Pacific, Report of the Australian Parliamentary Committee Delegation to Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands, March 2010.

Recommendation 2

The Committee recommends that collaborative research be undertaken into the sexual networks that exist in the Torres Strait Treaty zone, that includes the collection of data on the levels of Sexually Transmitted Infections, including HIV, on both sides of the border.

Recommendation 3

The Committee recommends that the Australian government facilitate forums for leaders in the region to come together at regular intervals to discuss HIV/AIDS prevention strategies, and, in particular, to seek ways to lessen the social stigma of talking about the disease.

Recommendation 5

The Committee recommends that the Australian government partner with non-government organisations and communities to find nutritional solutions that promote healthy eating and redress malnutrition, in affected areas in the Torres Strait and Papua New Guinea.

Recommendation 6

The Committee recommends that the Australian government encourage and support further institutional partnerships and/or reciprocal exchanges between the School of Medical and Health Sciences at the University of Papua New Guinea and Australian universities.

Recommendation 7

The Committee recommends that the Australian government make efforts to link Igat Hope with counterpart organisations in Australia to strengthen their advocacy potential.

Recommendation 9

The Committee recommends that the Australian government support additional health communications officer positions in the Torres Strait and treaty villages of the Western Province of Papua New Guinea.

Recommendation 10

The Committee recommends that the Australian government install additional rainwater tanks in treaty villages in the Western Province of Papua New Guinea.

Recommendation 11

The Committee recommends that any new health facility that the Australian government helps construct should provide for staff accommodation and ongoing maintenance, in consultation and partnership with the local community.

Recommendation 12

The Committee recommends that the Australian government, in conjunction with the Papua New Guinean government, facilitate more creative and inclusive forums in which locals on both sides of the treaty zone border can engage on health and other treaty related issues with each other and with government officials of both nations.

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